How and why digital graphics companies are succeeding because they found their niche. By Gail Nickel-Kailing I was sent on a quest to find digital graphics companies that are printing on textiles in niche markets. So what is a niche? Why a niche market? And who are these people? “Merriam-Webster” says that a niche market [...]

Thin film photovoltaic (PV) modules would be used for more mainstream commercial and residential solar energy applications if they were waterproof, since moisture degrades PV module performance. Chemical giant DuPont, Wilmington, Del., will partner with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to solve this problem, testing an ultra-thin protective film during a three-year research project. [...]

Julius Heywinkel GmbH has now become Heytex Bramsche GmbH, making the company’s successful brand name also the name of their company. The Heytex companies manufacture coated and laminated technical textiles for products ranging from truck tarps and tents to advertising banners, large-format screens and stadium roofing. Along with the corporate restructuring, there has been a [...]

A joint venture between Teijin Limited, Osaka, Japan, and Cargill Inc., Minneapolis, Minn., has ended amicably with Cargill resuming full ownership of NatureWorks LLC. The maker of Ingeo™ biobased renewable plastics and resins, NatureWorks LLC, didn’t fit into Teijin’s recent portfolio restructuring. The global economic downturn has slowed sales growth of Ingeo, but NatureWorks continues [...]

BigSky Technologies LLC, Rochester, N.Y., manufactures textile finishes and coatings using fewer harmful chemicals and more sustainable processes, so its recent acquisition of G3 Technology Innovations LLC, maker of GreenShield™ products, is a natural fit. The GreenShield product line of environmentally friendly textile finishes for water and stain repellence works through patented nanotechnology that permanently [...]

Science-based businesses need the best advice to ensure successful product research and development. DSM Biomedical, Geleen, The Netherlands, manufactures coatings and biomedical polymers used in drug delivery and implantable devices, and recently added substance to its Scientific Advisory Board with three new members: Dr. Samuel Stupp, Northwestern University, Chicago, an expert in polymer chemistry’s uses [...]

Demand in the U.S. for disposable medical supplies will increase 4.6 percent annually to $59 billion in 2013, according to a new study from The Freedonia Group Inc., Cleveland, Ohio. The projected increase in disposable products follows concern about hospital infections, a rise in home health care and the aging of the population, among other [...]

Malignant melanoma, a skin cancer, is diagnosed each year in approximately 160,000 Americans, and overexposure to UV radiation (sunburn) in children is one of the biggest risk factors. The American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) awards grants of $8,000 to purchase permanent shade structures for daycares, schools and recreational programs where children play or learn outdoors. [...]

A holistic and strategic view of environmental management has earned the Glen Raven manufacturing center in Anderson, S.C., the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 14001:2004 certification. In meeting the ISO 14001:2004 environmental management system standards, Glen Raven demonstrated that its environmental procedures, processes and planning met the highest standards. The Anderson facility was certified after [...]

The Wagner Companies, Butler, Wisc., has announced that it has completed its ISO audit and received ISO 9001:2008 Certification. ISO 9001 is a family of standards for quality management systems, maintained by the International Organization for Standardization and administered by accreditation and certification bodies. Wagner is a manufacturer of handrail fittings and metal products for [...]